Environmental Advocacy

In support of our mission to improve the health of our patients, our employees, and our community, St. Mary’s Health System is committed to being as “green” as possible. We are constantly evaluating our procedures, policies, and products for the purpose of reducing our carbon footprint.

Use ozone in the laundry. With the use of ozone, we are able to reduce wash water temperature from 180 degrees to between 65 and 90 degrees. That saves 16,830 gallons of #2 fuel per year! As an added bonus, we were able to reduce the use of chemicals which means linens last longer, are softer, and smell fresher.

Water

Replaced several water pump parts and water cooled air handlers as well as improved our feed and sterilizer water recovery. These changes save 7.55 million gallons of water per year.

Recycling

45.5 tons of cardboard per year

99.4 tons of paper/magazines per year

15.7 tons of metalper year

473 each of wood pallets

Waste

Universal

2,776 Mercury lamps per year7,330 lbs of electronics per year1212 lbs of lead acid batteries per year20 lbs NICAD batteries per year55 lbs Lithium batteries per eyar243 lbs of PCB ballasts per year

Solid500 tons per year

Medical33.5 tons per year

PurchasingWe look to purchase Green Seal approved products or products made with recycled material whenever possible to reduce the amount hazardous chemicals in the healthcare environment.

SustainabilityThrough the work of its Nutrition Center, with the help of community partners, St. Mary’s has taken a lead role in a sustainability and food access study to learn how to best address the needs of the Lewiston/Auburn area. Additionally, Lots to Gardens, a youth and community driven program within the Nutrition Center, uses sustainable urban agriculture to create access to fresh food and to nurture healthy youth and a healthy community.

Overall, our efforts have allowed us to reduce our electricity consumption by 1,648,000 kilowatt hours annually and oil consumption by 750 gallons annually. That’s equivalent to taking 200 cars off the road and a monetary savings of $131,800 each year!

“Faced with the widespread destruction of the environment, people everywhere are coming to the understanding that we cannot continue to use the goods of the earth as we have in the past…(A) new ecological awareness is beginning to emerge…The ecological crisis is a moral issue.”